Improvement in knob-latches



c.s. :E NNINGS. :NoB-LATCHES.

'Patented Ju1y z5', 187s.

l '@fi N. PETERS. PHOTO LII'NOGRA UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

CHARLES S. JENNINGS, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THOMAS KENNEDY, OF NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN KNOB-LA'TCHES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 180,239, dated July 25, 1876; application tiled May 19, 1876.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES S. JENNINes, of New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State ot' Connecticut, have invented a new Improvement in Knob-Latches; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear. and exact description ot' the same, and which said drawings constitute part ot' this specification, and represent, in-

Figure l, a side View ofthe latch; Fig. 2, a section through the latch and knob; Fig. 3, a perspective view of the knob and its rose, looking from the rear.

This invention relates to an improvement in what are termed knob-latchesL-that is to say, latches in which the bolt is drawn by the turning ot' the knob.

ln the usual construction of this class ot' latches the follower or hub which moves the latch has been arranged so as to turn on bearings in the case, the spindle ot' the knobs passing through the hub of the door, and the knobs secured to the spindle on opposite sides ot' the door.

A serious difficulty in this class ot latches arises from the shrinkage of the door, as well as from the strain which is brought upon the knob, tending to loosen the rose which supp'orts the knob-a fact too well known to require discussion here.

The object of this invention is chieliy to avoid this difficulty', and it consists in combining, with the rose of a door-knob, the knob seated upon the outside of the rose, a disk upon the inside, the two'connected through and so as to secure both to the rose, and the said disk provided upon the inside with a pair ot` iingers, which extend inward, so as to engage with the latch mechanism and draw the latch when the knob is turned in either direction, thereby dispensing with the follower in the usual construction.

rIhe latch-bolt A is constructed with a crosshead, B, extending above and below the tail ofthe latch, and through the case a perforation, C, is made above and below the latch, so as to expose the end of the cross-head, as seen in Fig. l. The latch-bolt is provided with the usual spring D, the tendency of vwhich is to force the latch-bolt outward.

projecting finger, a, from both the upper and under edge, ot' sufficient length to extend into the p'ert'oration C in the case and bear against the cross-head B ot' the latch-bolt, as seen in Fig. 2, openings being first made through the door tor that purpose. A corresponding knob is arranged upon each side ot' the door, 1ingers from each bearin g in like manner against the cross head. Hence, by turning' either knob the ripper or lower finger, according to the direction the knob is turned, will bear against the cross-head and draw in the bolt.

This construction affords a strong bearing or support for the knobs independent bt' each other, and so far independentof the case that the shrinking or swelling oi the door has no eiect thereon. Again, the usual adjustment ot' the knobs on the spindle to adapt them to varying thickness of doors is avoided, because ofthe independence of knobs one ofthe other. A

I claim- In combination with the rose ot' a doorknob, the knob arranged upon one side, with a disk, F, upon the opposi te side, the two connected, so as to secure both to the rose, and the disk provided with lingers 'a a, substantially as and for the purpose described.

CHARLES S. JENNINGS.

Witnesses:

JOHN E. EAELE, JN0. D. PATTEN.

Through the neck G of the rose 

